Clip-clop, clip-clop-
Pedestrians thronged the street as an impressively large chestnut horse ambled along, carrying a little girl with braided hair who was barely taller than a scallion. The enormous difference in their sizes drew plenty of sidelong looks and whispers. "Whose young lady is that? What a dashing figure-"
"Never seen her, but that looks like a horse from the Eldest Princess's Residence. I've seen Chief Steward Hou walking it before. Looked like a 'mad monkey on horseback'-"
"Steward Hou? One of the so-called 'four marvels of the capital'?"
"Four marvels of the capital? What's that supposed to mean?"
"Shows how little you know! It's a new saying: Steward Hou's beauty, His Highness the Crown Prince's virtue, the He Household's third young master's fearlessness in the face of death, and Sect Leader Li Chimo's pure heart and lack of desire. They're supposedly so outstanding they can leave emperors speechless and sect masters ashamed. Even Young Master Xie Jinhuan can hardly compare-"
"Since when does a mere Li Chimo deserve to be mentioned alongside those first three?"
"He's just there to make up the numbers. Put Young Master Xie on that list, and the saying would never spread-"
Jiang Xian rode with the Horse-Slaying Saber over her shoulder, listening to the roadside chatter. Though it was entertaining, a trace of idle boredom still lingered between her brows.
Coal Ball crouched in front of the saddle, bobbing its head toward the restaurants lining the street.
But Jiang Xian had little appetite at the moment. She was seriously considering what to do next.
Ever since the affair in the Southern Border ended, the Invisible Great Hand seemed to have vanished. It had neither assigned her any more tasks nor sent her back to Northern Zhou.
As a girl of seventeen or eighteen,